Americana Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. $APD

Key Points

• Americana Partners LLC initiated a position in Air Products and Chemicals by purchasing 90,431 shares worth approximately $25.2 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.66% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with the stock receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $333.88, despite some recent target-price reductions.
• Air Products reported quarterly EPS of $3.47, beating estimates of $3.34, while revenue reached $3.16 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.81 per share, representing a 2.3% annualized yield.

Americana Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 90,431 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $25,161,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of APD. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 2.3% in the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,457 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,188,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Air Products and Chemicals by 360.2% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 11,616 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,232,000 after buying an additional 9,092 shares in the last quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Products and Chemicals by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $386,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its holdings in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 26,802 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $7,457,000 after buying an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC increased its stake in Air Products and Chemicals by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 16,860 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,690,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on APD shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $373.00 price objective on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research note on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $336.00 to $305.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $360.00 to $346.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Air Products and Chemicals in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Argus upped their target price on shares of Air Products and Chemicals from $316.00 to $329.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Air Products and Chemicals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $333.88.

Air Products and Chemicals Stock Up 1.5%

NYSE:APD opened at $316.37 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock's fifty day moving average is $294.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $289.73. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $229.11 and a 52 week high of $316.64.

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. Air Products and Chemicals had a negative net margin of 0.38% and a positive return on equity of 16.87%. Air Products and Chemicals's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.09 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. will post 13.46 EPS for the current year.

Air Products and Chemicals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 4th will be given a dividend of $1.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 4th. This represents a $7.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Air Products and Chemicals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -3,290.91%.

Air Products and Chemicals Company Profile

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc is a global industrial gas and related equipment company serving customers in industries such as refining, chemicals, manufacturing, metals, electronics, food and beverage, healthcare, and energy. The company supplies atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen and argon, as well as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, specialty gases and other industrial gases.

Air Products produces and distributes gases through pipelines, on-site facilities, bulk deliveries and packaged-gas systems.

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